Complicating the Narratives – The Whole Story

talk-show hosts like journalists ... know how to grab the brain’s attention and stimulate fear, sadness or anger.... We value the ancient power of storytelling, and we get that good stories require conflict, characters and scene. But in the present era of tribalism, it feels like we’ve reached our collective limitations... I met psychologists, mediators, lawyers, rabbis... who know how to disrupt toxic narratives ...get people to open up to new ideas, rather than closing down in judgment and indignation....
economists have gradually adjusted their models to account for ... systematic human quirks. Journalism has yet to undergo this awakening...
the brain behaves differently in charged interactions. It’s impossible to feel curious, for example, while also feeling threatened.... anxiety renders us immune to new information... no amount of investigative reporting or leaked documents will change our mind... Intractable conflicts feed upon themselves... [E]veryone loses...
scholars ... have identified dozens of ways to break out of the trap... the goal is not to wash away the conflict; it’s to help people wade in and out ... with their humanity intact... Complexity is contagious... wonderful news for humanity.... There are many ways to complicate the narrative... the main idea is to feature nuance, contradiction and ambiguity ...